Roughly 270,000 school-aged youth were in foster care at the end of fiscal year 2017. Youth in foster care may change schools frequently, which can negatively affect their academic achievement. The Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA), enacted in 2015, reauthorized the Elementary and Secondary Education Act of 1965 and included provisions to improve…

Fostering Opportunities is an innovative student engagement program for middle school and high school students who have experienced foster care. The goal of the program is to help youth who have experienced foster care be successful in school and ultimately earn a high school credential. Fostering Opportunities was developed because of the clear…

Children with severe to profound intellectual disability have been excluded from education on the basis that their impairment makes them "ineducable". The Western Cape Forum for Intellectual Disability challenged this notion through litigation against the South African Government. The ensuing judgement asserts the right to education of…

Each day, in schools across America, teachers willingly embrace the often daunting task of educating the nation's youth. Students who share little more than a common birth year are placed together with a teacher who is expected to take them from wherever they happen to be academically at the beginning of the year to where they simply must be by…

The Common Core State Standards (CCSS) in English and math were finalized in 2010 and, as of July 2012, have been adopted in full by 45 states. These standards provide a framework that is intended to ensure that all students who graduate from high school in the United States have attained the knowledge and competencies that prepare them well for…

In 2008, Thailand passed legislation on the educational provisions for students with disabilities to mandate the implementation of inclusive education. This article provides a historical overview of special education in Thailand and the emergence of inclusive education as it moves from policy to practice. To further identify the challenges faced…

The federal government has had a long-standing commitment to ensuring access of English Learner (EL) students to a meaningful education. As early as 1968, the "Elementary and Secondary Education Act" ("ESEA") contained provisions for supporting the education of EL students and in its 1974 landmark decision, "Lau v.…

The author describes her discussion with school personnel, administrators, tutor/interpreters, and deaf students, regarding the effects of mainstreaming and P.L. 94-142. She cites general dissatisfaction with both the social and intellectual progress made after 10 years of the legislation and notes difficulties with the concept of least…

Four commissioned papers on approaches to implement the least restrictive environment (LRE) provision of P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, are presented. The authors were asked to develop criteria applicable to the local level and appropriate to a variety of contexts. Papers are presented from the following authors:…

To identify factors which facilitate and limit the successful implementation of pre-referral intervention systems in public schools, a survey was conducted of Maine Directors of Special Education who represented school systems using pre-referral systems. Forty-eight of 67 special education directors responded to the survey; 20 additional responses…

The Hawaii State Department of Education's compliance plan for serving the special needs of minority students of limited English proficiency includes current policies, procedures, and program implementation specifications. The procedures address: surveys of newly enrolled students, English and native language proficiency assessment, program…

The manual presents guidelines for use by South Dakota School districts regarding planning, implementing, and evaluating services for gifted students. Relevant laws and regulations are cited, followed by a statement of educational philosophy for gifted programs. Five needs are addressed briefly: identification of the gifted population, a…

Problems facing the Pacific Basin Territories' attempt to implement P.L. 94-142, the Education for All Handicapped Children Act, include lack of felt need for services to mildly handicapped students, lack of accommodation for cultural values in the law, and confused communications concerning the development of special education. Further…

This reprint of an article on using grade advancement as a method for meeting the needs of some intellectually or academically gifted students is preceded by a commentary that concludes that popular sentiment and negative folklore supporting grade advancement are unfounded. Grade advancement guidelines are provided. (Contains references.) (CR)

Guidelines are offered to serve as a practical, adaptable model for implementation of a search, screening, and identification process for students eligible for Gifted and Talented Education (GATE) in California. The guidelines cover: catgories of identification; appropriate grade levels for identification; general procedures for search and…